JOY: ‘Editorial leadership, skillful storytelling and community media links’ lead to designation
By Lucy Smithwick, East Mecklenburg High ’20
Even when sick with pneumonia last fall, Elise Trexler couldn’t stop thinking about journalism. She noticed that new stories weren’t getting published on the website and worried whether her staff was getting the help they needed.
That sickness also put her behind in creating a portfolio for Student Journalist of the Year. But she persevered, and in late February, Trexler, West Henderson High Wingspan editor and class of 2020 graduate, got a call from her adviser. She had just received the title of 2020 Rachel Rivers-Coffey N.C. High School Journalist of the Year.
“I was chilling in bed and I got a call from Mr. Livingston,” Trexler said. “I answered and he was like ‘I just got a call from Monica (Hill) down at NCSMA. We are gonna hold the winter meeting,’ and I was like ‘okay, but why did you call me?’ And he was like ‘well she also told me that in about an hour you’re gonna see that Elise Trexler is gonna be announced as Journalist of the Year on Twitter!’ I just started screaming on the phone, it was awesome.”
From the perspective of Wingspan adviser Jason Livingston, it was a well-deserved recognition.
“A lot of students are what we as teachers consider ‘grade grubbers’ and they want the highest possible GPA, so they’ll take a class just for the sake of taking it,” Livingston said. “Elise takes classes so that she can gain insight into a subject and utilize that to help other people in some way.”
Judges of the competition noted that Trexler’s “editorial leadership, skillful storytelling and community media links” are what made her stand out from the other candidates. On the website where her Journalist of the Year portfolio is featured, Trexler explains that she took advantage of every experience in journalism offered to her.
Trexler’s passion for journalism and magnetic personality came across to everyone she worked with, however, and not just the judges.
“Elise is so motivated that it motivates me,” said Haley Dunnigan, West Henderson High (‘21). “I want to be like her: always there for others and always helping and teaching people both in and out of the classroom.”
Not only did Trexler’s work as online editor of the Wingspan Online pay off, but it prepared her for the creation of the website which earned her the win.
She suggests to those applying for the 2021 award to not put off the creation of the portfolio.
“I would definitely say, ‘Don’t wait,’” Trexler said. “Everyone’s going to procrastinate a little bit, but try to avoid it. Give yourself at least a week to get all your stuff together because it can get really stressful. Also, make sure your essay’s good, because that’s what’ll show your personality. Other than that, it’s all just compiling your work, which speaks for itself.”
Even though Livingston sees Trexler “on the cover of The Washington Post, CNN or The New York Times” in her future, that is not all she plans to do.
Trexler was invited to enter the Hussman School of Journalism and Media at UNC thanks to her newly received award, and is prepared to double major in journalism and something else.
One activity she will not continue, however, is band, specifically playing the bass clarinet. Instead, her love for the arts is sustained through her history with dance.
“I’ve danced since I was three, and don’t plan to stop,” Trexler said. “After all, I need a way to get my energy out that isn’t just through writing.”
No matter what path Trexler decides to take, whether it be through the Hussman School of Journalism and Media at UNC or elsewhere, she has made her mark on those close to her and has set an example for journalism students across the state.
“Elise is a student that you can’t replace,” Livingston said. “We’re gonna work hard to continue some of the traditions she built in our press room and I wish her the best of luck next year as she embarks on her journey through life.”
NC High School Journalist of the Year
The NC Press Foundation sponsors the Rachel Rivers-Coffey North Carolina High School Journalist of the Year award each year. Applications for next year’s competition should be submitted in February 2021. This year’s winners are:
2020 Rachel Rivers-Coffey North Carolina High School Journalist of the Year: $3,000 – Elise Trexler, West Henderson High ‘20 (Hendersonville)
Alternates: $1,000 – Emily Schmidt, J.H. Rose High ‘20 (Greenville); Lucy Smithwick, East Mecklenburg High ‘20 (Charlotte); Emmy Trivette, First Flight High ‘20 (Kill Devil Hills)